Tuesday, October 11, 2016

This past summer, I finally met the excellent and brave Kayle Collards Martin, from Cowgirls and Collard Girls, after making friends with her on IG (the root of so many friendships).

She asked me to post on her site as a guest blogger, and the result is up today! It's one of my favorite kale recipes to date--BKT Happy Hour--->kale smothered in a tangy, vegan bacon-tomato-cashew sauce and eaten as salad or chips.

"Bean water" is a gnarly way to describe any sort of esculent, but it's an especially lacking term for an ingredient that's taken an entire class of foods that formerly "had to be made from eggs," and transformed it into something that could easily be vegan. Aquafaba is a much more fitting and fabulous way to describe this liquid, which is the cooking water left behind after making beans (commonly chickpeas). This bean cooking by-product can be whipped into a stable foam that mimics traditional meringue in loads of vegan recipes including pavlova, French macaron, quiche, and even marshmallows.

Aquafabulous peaks to be transformed into vegan quiche.

Since aquafaba is relatively new to the culinary stage, folks are still learning how to best utilize it. Zsu wrote this book to unshroud this lowly ingredient, and to explain why it shouldn't be thrown away.

I've been playing around with super sugary meringue cookies, ever since I joined the Facebook group Vegan Meringue - Hits and Misses. This group offers tons of vegan meringue inspiration and recipes, and throughout her cookbook, Zsu does a great job crediting folks that were first to innovate with aquafaba.

My first play with aquafabulous meringues. I made these for Portland's Really Big Vegan Bakesale, from Lynn Dic's recipe c/o Facebook's vegan meringue group!

If you haven't yet played around with aquafaba, Zsu has made a few videos to accompany the release of her book. My favorite is this meringue primer, which shows via time-lapse, the different stages of aquafaba as it's whipped from a froth to stiff peaks in a stand mixer.

Bicentennial Sun-Dried Tomato and Artichoke Quiche lefties.

Aquafaba, the cookbook, is broken into the following chapters: primer, condiments, breakfast, lunch and dinner, sweets from the pantry, sweets from the oven, bonus bean recipes, and ingredients and equipment. Since I've played around with sugary aquafaba meringues already, I was most excited to explore the savory recipes.

Here's what I've made from Aquafaba thus far:

Sun-Dried Tomato and Artichoke Quiche (lunch and dinner chapter)

I've been a fan of Somer's tofu and cashew based Early Retirement Quiche, for a while now, so it was super exciting to try a new recipe that didn't rely on 'foo. This quiche was a bit of a project to prepare, and also really fun, because it requires a huge bowlful of stiff-peaked meringue. Folding the meringue into the quiche batter was a kitchen activity I hadn't done in 26 years of veganism. The quiche itself was light, airy and flavorful, but hard to compare to Somer's recipe, as they yield very different styles of quiche.

Italian Dressing (condiments chapter)

I'm always on the lookout for new salad dressings, especially creamy ones that aren't nut-based. This recipe makes a creamy Italian style dressing, which was really delish tossed with simple green lettuce. Because I need to get in as much anti-inflammatory EFA/EPA oil as possible, I used 7 Sources instead of the neutral oil called for in the recipe. This dressing was so tasty, the omega-filled oil wasn't really detectable--this will be in our regular salad dressing rotation. (recipe and photo below).

Curried Caribbean Coconut Chickpeas, topped with schpicy jalapeño.

Curried Caribbean Coconut Chickpeas (bonus bean recipes chapter)

Zsu was smart to include a chapter in her book to help use up the sad and rejected chickpeas you'll likely find languishing in your fridge. After making the Italian dressing and quiche, I definitely had chix0rz to use up, and this stew came together completely from my pantry and fridge. I have no idea if it's authentic or not, but it was mighty delicious. I made mine with cauliflower, shredded purple cabbage, and red pepper. The sauce is made from homemade curry powder heavy on the paprika, tomatoes, and coconut milk. Yumpy.

Classic Waffle hand.

Classic Waffles (breakfast chapter)

I'm editing this review to add a picture of the Classic Waffles I made last night, in a not so classic way. Instead of the AP flour called for in the recipe, I subbed Bob's GF 1:1 baking flour instead. These came out crispy and great, even though I also used a new-to-me Belgian waffle iron and really had no idea what I was doing. I see many savory version of these in my future, split in half for sammiches.

This dressing is reminiscent of the popular casual Italian restaurant salad dressing, only it’s better for you. The sunflower seeds give texture of parmesan cheese and a mild eggy flavor. Enjoy it on salad, steamed vegetables, and as a marinade. If it separates slightly, just give it a quick shake.

What You Need:1/4 cup aquafaba, chilled (see Note)1/4 cup canola or other neutral oil, chilled2 tablespoons plain unsweetened nondairy yogurt1 to 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice1 teaspoon white miso1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes2 teaspoons granulated organic sugar1 garlic clove, minced1/2 teaspoon sea salt1/4 teaspoon dried parsley or 1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley1/4 teaspoon dried oregano1/4 teaspoon dried basilPinch red pepper flakesGround black pepper, to taste2 tablespoons finely ground sunflower seeds, optionalWhat You Do:1. Add the aquafaba to a wide-mouth pint or quart mason jar. Using an immersion blender that will fit in the jar, blend the aquafaba until frothy, about 20 seconds. While the blender is running, slowly add the oil in a steady stream.2. When the mixture is homogenous and emulsified, add the yogurt, vinegar, lemon juice, miso, nutritional yeast, sugar, garlic, salt, parsley, oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, and ground black pepper. Blend again. Stir in the sunflower seeds (if using), and chill for 30 minutes before serving.Note: Although aquafaba is best if homemade using the recipe provided in the book, you can use aquafaba from canned chickpeas. Use the organic, low-sodium, canned chickpeas and strain off the liquid into a measuring cup using a fine mesh strainer. Note the amount of liquid you acquired, then add it to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the liquid reduces by 1/3. Cool the aquafaba completely before using.

Wanna win a copy of Aquafaba? I've got TWO COPIES to giveaway, to readers in the USA. One book will be given to a local Portland resident (please let me know you're local in your comment), and the other will be chosen at random. To enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment on this post with an easy way for me to reach you electronically. Please also tell me if you've cooked or baked with aquafaba, and if so, what did you make? To be eligible, comments must be left on this post by midnight October 8th, PST.The winners are Mindy and Lacy!

Thanks for visiting my little crumb of the internet!Click here to subscribe to my blog and get posts delivered to your email when I update!

Come back soon! xo kittee

Disclosure:This post contains Amazon affiliate links, which means if you click on a product link and purchase an item, I'll receive a small compensation.I received a free copy of Aquafaba for the purpose of review. No compensation or gift was exchanged for this post, and as always, the rad opinion posted here is my own.

Saturday, September 24, 2016

I could give a zillion sincere excuses why I haven't updated my blog since July a) auto immune diseases are exhausting, b) I'm not a serious blogger, c) 'twas busy picking tomatoes and admiring dahlias, d), nomming buffalo tofu all day, everyday, e), our computer lives upstairs in our 108 year old house, and it was too damned hot to hang out on the second floor. Pick one or five, they all work.

Our warm weather just broke this week, and suddenly here I sit bundled up in a newly knitted sweater and knee socks ready to blog my heart out. And, good news for you, I'm breaking my hiatus with two very special and uhmeeeeezing things to share.

Air fryer money shot.

The first exciting tidbit to share is an AIR FRYER GIVEAWAY! I've been given the opportunity from GoWise USA to giveaway a 3.7 quart model to one of my fine readers! They gifted me this same model a couple months back, and after lots and lots of spins with it around the block, I'm a big fan! I'm super excited for the opportunity to gift one to one of you!

If you're not familiar, Air Fryers are cool counter-top appliances that quickly crispify food by spinning very hot air around whatever you fill them with. They produce morsels with a very satisfying crunch without using a bunch of oil, and the cool thing, literally, is they don't heat up your kitchen. So far my research has indicicated they make amazing, very crispy roasted chickpeas, very good potatoes/Jo Jos, yummy sweet potatoes and rilllllllly, rilllly good buffaloed tofu.

Which brings me to the second item on today's show and tell agenda--my newest obsession--AIR FRIED BUFFALO TOFU. I've been eating this tofu every which way for the last few weeks. It's insanely good in sushi (I'll share that in another post), and in salad rolls, whoppers, or just as is with a couple of sides (don't forget the ranch).

While I haven't tried this recipe in the oven, I don't see why it wouldn't work well. Try baking it around 400F on a baking sheet covered with well oiled parchment, turning it once it's brown on the bottom, until it's golden and crunchy all over. Top with buffalo and eat as as, or continue baking for a few more minutes.

What You Do:
In a storage container, combine the water, tamari, vinegar, 1 tablespoon of nooch, liquid smoke and garlic. Cut the tofu into whatever shapes you want to buffalo. I like mine in fingers, so I cut the tofu block in half horizontally, then into 24 even pieces. Submerge the tofu into the marinade, cover and refrigerate from a few hours in advance of preparation, to several days.

When you're ready to prepare the tofu, spritz the air fryer basket with spray oil. In a medium bowl, combine the batter ingredients and stir well to combine. In a separate dish, put half of the crushed cereal.

Dip each piece of tofu into the batter until well covered, then roll into the crushed cereal and gently transfer to the air fryer basket. Repeat until the basket is full, but not over crowded. For the 3.7 quart model, I prepare the tofu in two batches. Spritz the tofu with spray-oil and air fry at 380F for about 10-12 minutes, shaking the tofu several times, until crispy and golden brown.

While the tofu is cooking, prepare the buffalo sauce. In a small bowl, combine the buffalo sauce ingredients, and stir well to combine.

Brush the tops of the air fried tofu with buffalo sauce and continue to air fry at 380F, until the tofu is very crispy and done to your liking, about 6 minutes more. Eat as is, or brush with extra buffalo sauce.

Crunchy buffalo, with extra sauce on top.
Eat it as as, stuff it into sushi or wraps, or serve it with salad and mashed potatoes. Always with ranch.

The GoWise 3.7 quart air fryer giveaway is open to readers in the United States, with the exception of Alaska and Hawaii. If you'd like to enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment on this post with an easy way for me to reach you electronically. Please also tell me which color you'd prefer: black, chili red, or plum, and what you want to make first. To be eligible, comments must be left on this post by Midnight October 1st, PST.

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

A few weeks back, Da Capo Press sent me a review copy of Allyson Kramer's latest cookbook, Naturally Lean. Allyson and I met in the vegan blogging community many years ago and bonded because we both eat a gluten-free diet out of medical necessity. She's one of my favorite XGFX authors, and I can always count on her for delicious, creative recipes.

Athough Naturally Lean sounds like a diet cookbook (and can be used as one), it was written to offer recipes focused on nutrient-rich whole foods, rather than highly processed ingredients. The title comes in because Allyson believes if you eat more unprocessed whole foods like fruits, vegetables, beans, grains, greens and seeds, you'll consume less calories than you would from typically over processed foods.

For me, I'm stoked to have another cookbook full of delicious vegan and gluten-free recipes that are also refined sugar free. This means I can gobble up as much of the yummy desserts and savories in this book as I want (for the most part I ignore the serving size suggestions) and keep my arthritis and muscle crap at bay.

Naturally Lean is organized a bit differently than most cookbooks, which takes a little getting used to. Instead of recipes being grouped together by type, i.e. breakfast, lunch, and dinner, they're organized by ingredients: greens & crucifers, hearty grains, fabulous fruits, nuts & seeds, legumes, and squash, roots, & mushrooms. It's nothing to get chuffed about, a few well positioned sticky notes will help you out, or if you're a brainiac, you can even use the index!

Flax and Chia Garlic Crackers.

So far I've made Flax and Chia Garlic Crackers, Red Quinoa Tabbouleh, Cinnamon Pumpkin Donuts and Chocolate Brownie Cake. Not to bullshit, all four of these recipes will probably go into heavy rotation here. I didn't have to go to the store to buy any ingredients except for tomatoes, which I buy weekly anyway, and everything came out A++++.

Flax and Chia Garlic Crackers
These were ridiculously easy to make and were gobbled up in a couple of days. My tip is to score the crackers before baking, and then they easily break up into perfect shapes when they're done. These would lend themselves to all sorts of different flavor combos.

Red Quinoa Tabbouleh chockful of fresh herbs, which is the way I love to eat.
Herb it up!

Red Quinoa Tabbouleh
Tabbouleh is the perfect summer food (parsley, tomatoes and cukes galore), and I've made this recipe three times already in the last week. Allyson's version has the perfect balance of olive oil to lemon and does not skimp or taste "diet-y." I left out the paprika, 'cuz I wanted the other flavors to shine, and I love how this recipe has you cooking quinoa with a crushed clove of garlic (Imash it in, instead of discarding as the recipe suggests).

Baked Cinnamon Butternut Squash Donuts 'cuz I'm a cheater.

Cinnamon Pumpkin Donuts
I cheated with these and used some steamed butternut squash I had in the freezer instead of pumpkin, and they were still wonderful. Unglazed, these are a bit muffin-like and since I wanted something a bit more decadent, I dipped mine in glaze. I mixed 1/4 cup melted coconut oil, 1/4 cup crunchy almond butter and 2 tablespoons of maple syrup. It's warm here, so I dipped and chilled these multiple times to build up the glaze. YUMP.

This cake is a keeper in the Kittee department. I've been eating it for breakfast everyday this week, since I've been in need of a wee caffeine rousing lately. I glazed my cake by mixing together 3 tablespoons of melted coconut oil, 4 tablespoons cacao powder, a little vanilla extract, and 2 tablespoons of maple syrup. I topped the glaze with coconut shreds and toasted hazelnuts and then tucked the whole cake away in the fridge to keep the topping solid. The recipe is shared with permission below!!

Chocolate Brownie Cake

Yields 16 servings (more like 12 for me).

This chocolate cake is quite a delight, and it happens to be oil free, low in calories, and low in fat. It will make you think of dessert in a band-new light. Just serve this delightful cake to guests (or unsuspecting family members) and see whether they can tell it's closer to health food than junk food. My littlest say it tastes just like a brownie, and I don't disagree.

Preheat your oven to 350F and line the bottom and the sides of an 8-inch square cake pan with parchment paper. To easily do this, cut two strips 8 inches wide x 12 inches long and crisscross them over each other to completely cover the pan.

Gradually add the teff flour and the chickpea flour along with the water and mix well until a smooth batter is formed. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 30 minutes, or until firm to the touch.

Let cool briefly and then serve. Enjoy plain or top with chocolate glaze and/or fruit.

Da Capo Books as offered to send TWO copies of Naturally Lean to two of my US based readers (thanks Da Capo!!). To be considered for a free book, simply comment on this post with an easy way for me to contact you. I'll pick two winners a week from today (to be eligible, you must comment by midnight PST on August 3rd).

Congratulations to Nicollette and Andrea who are the winners for this giveaway!

Thanks for visiting my little crumb of the internet! Click here to subscribe to my blog and get posts delivered to your email when I update!

Come back soon!
xo kittee

Disclosures:This post contains affiliate links, which means if you click on a product link and purchase an item, I'll receive a small compensation.

I received a free review copy of Naturally Lean from Da Capo Press. No compensation or gift was exchanged for this review, and as always, the rad opinion posted here is my own.

Sunday, May 29, 2016

Here's the wonderful bundle of Ethiopian love I received from Fassica.Shiro on the left, pure teff injera, and berbere on the right.

While stalking Instagram for new and tasty Ethiopian inspiration, I ran across Fassica! They're a small, new company based in California, who's goal is "to find a way to offer authentic Ethiopian spices and most importantly 100% Teff Injera (gluten free) to many through [their] websiteFassica." People are always asking me which berbere I recommend, so you know I was all over this, right?

I got in touch with Fassica, and they sent me over a huge bag of all teff injera, plus a bag of miten shiro and berbere. The best mail ever!! YUM SO GOOD!!

I'm so excited to finally have an online, domestic source for Ethiopian pantries, I love and can recommend. I really hope folks start ordering from them, because they deserve the business, and also because the berbere from Frontier and Penzey's is not what you want for Ethiopian food! Folks continue to purchase these brands, which are almost all cayenne pepper, and then complain that my recipes are toooOOOoo spicy. Of course they are! You just added 3 tablespoons of cayenne pepper to that pot of lentils!!!! :((((((

Shiro, timatim fitfit, kale and doro wot with potatoes. I followed the video from Make Great Ethiopian Food for the doro wot, and cooked the onions for THREE HOURS, and added gardein Chick'n Scallopini and potatoes to make it vegan!!! Ha ha. Most doro wot cooks for longer. :-/

If you're worried about ordering injera online, Fassica packs theirs so securely, with padding and an ice pack, too. It's pretty much the most gorgeous pure-teff injera of all time, and I really wish I lived closer to them, so I could pick some up on when I'm hit by an Ethiopian whim. If you order some, be prepared to cook food to accompany it the day it arrives, because fresh injera needs to be used ASAP! Or if you have leftovers like I did, you can turn it into fitfit/firfir, or even dry it out in the fridge and make crunchy chips (dirkosh), which make the best hummus crackers--the tang in all teff injera cannot be duplicated.

Fassica is so awesome, they've agreed to send a bag of berbere and shiro to TWO of my readers (you must have a Canadian or US address to participate). Just leave a comment telling me what your favorite Ethiopian food is, and in a week I'll pick two winners at random to receive the free yums. *To qualify for the giveaway, please comment by Midnight, June 5th PST, with an easy way for me to reach you.The winners are: Josiane and Jfshop!! Thanks for participating, everyone!

Here's the shiro I made from their product. I followed therecipe on their site, and it's the first time I ever made it adding tomato.

Shiro is probably the easiest thing you could ever make. You just saute an onion and garlic in a little oil and add water and the powder (shiro is made from spices and ground legumes). It thickens up just like gravy, and after you've let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes, it's ready to go. If you don't have injera, you can just eat it with a salad and a big fluffy and crunchy baguette. It's super comforting to eat, and I long for it during our long gray and rainy days in PDX.

Ye'souf Fitfit up close and personal.

Souf Fitfit is also stupid easy to make! I just toast sunflower seeds in a pan with a clove of garlic, then make a sauce out of it in a blender with water and salt. Pour it over torn injera with minced jalapeno, sweet bells, an herb like parsley or cilantro and either white or green onion. Taste for salt and add a little lemon or lime juice, if you want it tangier.

I mixed Fassica berbere with a little EFA oil and drizzled it over a very non-ethiopian dinner--cheese grits, steamed kale and tempeh bacon. It was sublime.

The berbere is a great addition to any pantry, even if you're not up to cooking a big Ethiopian feast. I often mix it into a little EVOO or EFA oil and drizzle it on top of greens and grits. You can mix it into dough or use it anywhere you'd like a little salty bit of heat. It's a million times more flavorful than plain ol' red pepper, 'cuz it's got a million other spices in it too.
Thanks for visiting my little crumb of the internet! Click here to subscribe to my blog and get posts delivered to your email whenever I update!

Come back soon!
xo kittee

Disclosures:This post contains affiliate links, which means if you click on a product link and purchase an item, I'll receive a small compensation.

I received free spices and injera from Fassica. No compensation or gift was exchanged for this review, and the rad opinion posted here is my own.

Sunday, May 1, 2016

Bacon-Ish will leave you and your kitchen smelling bacon-ish for a while, too!

Bacon-Ish is a brand-new cookbook written by blogger Leinana Two Moons, from Vegan Good Things. This cookbook begins where lots of delicious things begin--in a chapter focused on vegan bacon. Besides the bacon norms you'd expect to find like tempeh, tofu, coconut, mushroom, and eggplant, you'll also find recipes for bacon made from chickpeas, carrots, TVP, and seitan. I rilllly wanted to make the Tofu Bacon, but I couldn't find any smoked tofu in Portland to save my life. What's my city coming to?

The rest of the cookbook focuses on recipes that incorporate these bacon fundamentals, or are bacon-y all by themselves. You'll find the recipes organized by breakfast, soup, salads, sandwiches, sides, mains and sweets.

I decided to dig right into the "Meet the Bacons" chapter with Leinana's Tempeh Bacon. This was my favorite out of the three I tried, and I loved it for several reasons. The first being that the bacon was really easy to make and came out great. I usually have issues with tempeh bacon not having enough marinade or requiring too much oil to cook. I actually put the tempeh in a zip style plastic bag with the marinade and kept it in the fridge, lifting tempeh from the bag to cook every few days as desired. I loved this! I also learned to cut the tempeh verrrrrry thin for best results. The marinade ratio is just perfect in this recipe--the tempeh does not absorb it all like in others I've tried, which keeps it moist and flavorful, and the addition of oil really helps the tempeh cook without needing gobs more.

I admired the curly edges the Carrot Bacon acquired while baking.

I was intrigued by the idea of Carrot Bacon, so I made this on my second go. Instead of using a food processor, I pulled out my handy-dandy mandoline, and it worked just great. I loved the flavor and idea of these, but couldn't get them to firm up after baking. I was afraid they'd burn if I baked them any longer, so I popped them into my dehydrator for a couple of hours. The result was pretty fantastic--they developed a great chewy texture. I'll definitely be making more of these, but will probably double the recipe next time, since they didn't last past the afternoon. These made very snack-ish bacon-ish.

Coconut Bacon.

The last recipe I tried was the Coconut Bacon, which I'm sharing below with permission. Dazee and I both liked this simple version, and it'll go great on salads for the next week. Leinana wasn't kidding about watching this bacon the last few minutes of baking, mine went dark really fast--I caught it just on the cusp of burnt.

What You Do:
Preheat the oven to 350F. Whisk the tamari, liquid smoke, water, and maple syrup together in a large bowl. Stir in the coconut and mix well to ensure that the flakes are evenly coated.

Spread the coconut in an even layer on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 10 minutes, then stir. Bake another 8 minutes, keeping a very close eye on the coconut in the last few minutes. The coconut will go from almost done to completely burned very quickly. Remove from the oven when the coconut flakes on the outer edges of the pan are becoming a deep, dark brown, but not black.

Place the baking sheet on a cooling rack. The coconut will continue to crisp as it cools. Coconut bacon will keep 1 to 2 weeks in an airtight plastic container, but will become less crisp the longer you store it.

Giveaway City! --> Vegan Heritage Press is offering a free copy of Bacon-Ish to one of my readers in the United States! To win a copy, all ya have to do is leave a comment on this post by midnight, May 8th (PST), with an easy way to contact you. I'll pick a random person and announce the winner in this post.The winner is Karen Delaney!!!

Cake Maker

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I ❤ reader email.

These are affiliate links to my cookbook, and to the griddle I use for making really amazing, large, homemade teff injera! If you're planning to order via Amazon, please consider purchasing through my blog (I'll earn a small commission on each sale).